The Best-Kept Secret of Natural Medicine

This may be the best-kept secret of natural medicine… and it’s finally starting to come to light.

When used in conjunction with a healthy diet and exercise, ear acupuncture, or auriculotherapy, is the “secret ingredient” that can make the difference between comfortable, successful weight management, and uncomfortable deprivation and failure.

The secret to ear acupuncture’s success is its unmatched ability to affect many different body systems in a single treatment. How? Well, your tiny ear is actually a map of hundreds of unique points that correspond with different parts of your body. When stimulated, these points send out powerful signals. Some encourage hormone regulation, others help modulate pain or soothe anxiety. These biochemical changes are well-studied and documented affects of auriculotherapy. If you’d like to learn more about ear acupuncture before you dig into using it for specific conditions, click here.

Disclaimer: This blog post is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content is for general information purposes only. If you have medical questions or concerns, you should always seek guidance from a licensed practitioner who understands your personal medical history.

What is Ear Acupuncture?

Ear acupuncture is an ancient system of medicine, based on the same principles of acupuncture, that works with the body’s own healing systems. It’s safe, effective, and free of harmful side effects. During ear acupuncture treatment, acupuncture points on the ear are stimulated with pressure, microcurrent, or light. Best of all, it’s something you can do safely for yourself, right from the comfort of your home.

Below, you can read 4 compelling reasons why ear acupuncture could help support your weight loss journey.

1. Ear Acupuncture Helps with Cravings

The truth is, a “craving” is just the manifestation of a chemical desire coming from your brain—or in other words, an addiction. When your brain is used to a certain behavior and a habit has formed, that habit becomes a sort of addiction—something that signals to your brain that good, happy things are happening. This causes you to seek it out again and again.

Food is one of the most ritualistic parts of the human experience. We gather over food. We bond over food. We soothe ourselves with food. We reward ourselves with food. Unfortunately, these behaviors are not always biologically sound, and can lead to unhealthy habits.

That’s where ear acupuncture comes in. Research suggests that ear acupuncture can help reset those pathways of craving and reward to strengthen your resolve to stick to your eating and exercise plan!

2. Ear Acupuncture May Help with Mood

According to this study (along with others cited at the end of this post), auriculotherapy has the potential to profoundly improve mood and reduce sleep disturbances. Mood is a huge component of successful weight loss! Breaking poor eating habits and totally rewriting one’s routine is never easy—and often, it leads to unexplained negative emotions and feelings of anxiety, depression, anger, frustration and deprivation. It’s hard to push through a new lifestyle change when these strong underlying emotions are screaming at you to quit.

That’s where auriculotherapy comes in! It may help strengthen your resolve and balance your mood as you work to break old habits and forge a new relationship with food.

3. Ear Acupuncture Balances the Acupuncture Meridians

According to Chinese Medicine, there are many pathways—or channels of energy—that run through the body. They’re called Meridians! They each have different responsibilities and functions, but they’re all connected to each other. When one meridian is holding on to too much energy (Qi), another channel won’t receive enough. These patterns of excess and deficiency overtime can lead to symptoms, illness and disease.

On the other hand, when the meridians are balanced and Qi is able to flow freely through the body, the body has the innate ability to heal and thrive naturally. The purpose of acupuncture and auriculotherapy is two-fold. First, it strives to achieve balance in the meridians. And second, it strives to mitigate and relieve symptoms. The two processes go hand in hand!

The truth is, when your meridians are balanced and your Qi is flowing freely, every system in your body will function better—including the Endocrine system, which has perhaps the largest effect on metabolism and weight control.

If you’re interested in reading some studies that highlight the importance of including auriculotherapy in a weight loss program, you’ll find a full list of resources at the bottom of this post!

How Do I Treat?

Okay, now that you know that ear acupuncture is a valuable ally against seasonal allergies, you’re probably starting to wonder… how do I treat these points? And with what?

You’re on the right track! There are a few vital components to effective, accurate ear acupuncture.

1. A Good Reference Guide

The first thing you’ll need in order to treat the ear is a really good reference guide. Something that will show you WHAT points to treat, and WHERE the points are in an understandable, accurate picture. The only problem is, there are acupuncture points in all the nooks and crannies, including on the back of your ear. It would be pretty hard to see them all in a 2D image.

That’s why the best reference tool in the business is Auriculo 360. Check out the GIF below – as you can see, Auriculo 360 gives you a fully 3-dimensional ear that you can rotate, spin, turn and drag. You can also zoom in, toggle between left and right ears, and overlay the Nogier frequency zones (well-studied frequencies for different areas of the ear).

Finally, Auriculo 360 is complete with over a hundred pre-made protocols for common ailments, along with a database of hundreds of individual points. Protocols can be modified as needed to fit your treatment style! It’s an absolute no-brainer for anyone interested in learning and using auriculotherapy.

The best part is Auriculo 360 was designed to be incredibly affordable, with options less than $11 per month when paid annually.

2. A Way to Locate Points Accurately

Naturally, a reliable way to locate points comes next! There are many methods for point location that range from manual probes, to powerful devices that locate acupuncture points electrically.

These location tools range in price from ~$6 to ~$600, so it’s important to do your research and figure out which one will fit your needs.

Here are a few of the indicators that a point is “active,” or in other words, ready to receive treatment.

1. Color Change: Inspect the skin for changes in color at the point you are examining. Is there increased redness? Lack of color? A different color than the surrounding skin? A dry or flaky patch? These are all indications of an active point.
2. Skin structure abnormalities: Carefully look and feel for changes in skin structure. A raised bump or hard nodule, dryness, roughness or moisture may indicate the active point.
3. Tenderness: Is the point tender to the touch? A mechanical point detector with a round probe tip is very useful for detecting tenderness in the auricle. The tip should be small and blunt—small so that you can locate a point easily, and blunt so that you do not cause damage to the ear with pressure. A rounded ball tip is the most comfortable. You can purchase one here.

For beginners, we recommend starting with a manual probe. It will help you locate points and leave a small indentation on the ear that will help you place the seed properly. You can purchase one here.

Electronic Location:  If you’re a practitioner, high-quality auricular treatment devices have a measurement mode to electronically locate active points, and a treatment mode to treat the points once they are located. Active points will show lower electrical resistance than surrounding tissue. This is a more advanced process, but certainly worth it for those who are serious about auriculotherapy. The best microcurrent tool we’ve found is called the Pointoselect Digital. It has all the flexibility you need for advanced auricular work, like bipolar point detection and adjustable sensitivity. Treatment is just as flexible, giving you ultimate control over intensity, frequency, even pulse-width. If you’re serious about auriculotherapy, you can learn more about the Pointoselect Digital here: https://www.pointoselect.com

***Important Disclaimer: If you are not a licensed practitioner, you should not use a microcurrent device on anyone other than yourself.

3. A Powerful Way to Treat the Points

Finally, you’ll need a tool to treat! In some instances, if you’re a practitioner, this tool may be the same tool you use to electronically locate the point, like the Pointoselect Digital. For anyone else who ISN’T a practitioner, don’t worry! You can still effectively treat auricular points with a nifty tool called “ear seeds” or “ear pellets”. Ear seeds are tiny seeds from the vaccaria plant backed with a bandage-like adhesive square that you place on ear acupuncture points. Ear pellets are small, stainless steel beads (sometimes topped with a crystal for a fun look) that have a clear, adhesive circular backing.

Ear seeds and ear pellets work because the spherical shaped vaccaria seeds or stainless steel beads stimulate the acupuncture points on which they’re placed with light but consistent pressure, which sends a constant signal to your nervous system.

Treating Auricular Points with Ear Seeds

Many people apply ear seeds or pellets to treat ear acupuncture points. The continuous stimulation offered by the seeds extends and boosts the treatment, even as you work, travel or sleep. This means that results may be more pronounced, and improvement may occur more quickly. Some people press on the seeds or pellets throughout the day to offer even greater stimulation for a short period of time.

Step-by-Step Ear Seed/Pellet Treatment

1. For best results use the Auriculo 360 3D reference app to locate applicable ear acupuncture points for a given condition. You can do this right on your Android or Apple smartphone using the Auriculo 360 app.
2. Then, treat the suggested points by placing Auriculo 360 brand ear seeds or pellets, using tweezers, on the points recommended by Auriculo 360 for your condition.
3. Leave the seeds or pellets on your ear for up to a week, though they may come off on their own after a few days.
4. Follow the instructions on the ear seed or pellet packages for application, and be sure to always clean the ear before placing seeds or pellets so they adhere correctly!

***Important Disclaimer: If you are not a licensed practitioner, you should not use a microcurrent device on anyone other than yourself.

Weight Control Protocol: A Few ‘Points’ of Interest

1. ENDOCRINE (Master Point)

The Endocrine point is a Master Point. Master Points are points that are often electrically active; this means that your body is always in favor of you treating them. Master Points are often treated first because they can boost the effectiveness of other points.

According to traditional theories, the Endocrine point can help encourage hormone balance and proper thyroid function, and has anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic effects. It is also used to assist absorption and digestion functions and promote healthy fluid metabolism. It makes sense why this could be a valuable part of a weight management program!

2. Appetite Control Point

Appetite Control Point has been traditionally used to help relieve hunger, reduce food cravings and minimize compulsive eating. The purpose of treating this point is to make it a little bit easier to stick to your plan. Sounds great, eh? Best of all, it’s located in an open, easy spot, which makes for a simple treatment!

3. Stomach Point

Another easily located point, Stomach Point has been traditionally used to bolster the body’s digestive processes and regulate hunger signaling. A great addition to your weight management program!

Get the Full Weight Control Protocol in the Auriculo 360 App!

For the sake of brevity, we’ll only share 3 points here. But there are hundreds more points and protocols waiting in the Auriculo 360 app!

We hope these three tiny points will make a difference in your journey.

Ear Acupuncture has been used for thousands of years to help the body heal and thrive, naturally. For non-life-threatening conditions and wellness care, it can be a powerful holistic addition to your at-home wellness routine, or a great adjunct treatment to add to your professional practice!

To learn more about ear acupuncture, check out this blog post.

Or, learn more about the Auriculo 360 reference app here.

Finally, check out Auriculo 360 brand ear seeds and pellets here, so you can treat yourself at home!

Thanks For Reading!

-The “Ear Acupuncture For” Team

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References

https://www.pacificcollege.edu/news/blog/2014/11/05/acupuncture-can-help-weight-loss

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34496677/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27457720/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30180304/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31685381/